Wes is not feeling great since yesterday seemed to really sap his strength. Coupled with the cloudy skies and the potential of rain he decided it was best to stay put today. He is starting to feel better, but still not fully recovered. I am going to go out and hike the hard hike today which will involve about 16 km of distance with a total of 800 meter elevation ascent and about a 1000 meter descent.
Today we passed through woods and mountain villages on the eastern slopes of the Serra do Aarao. From the high viewpoint overlooking the valley we walked along a sweet chestnut tree lined track down to the beautiful town of Capela da Santiago.
As we left the drop off point we climbed up a trail through the woods which reminded us of the type of hikes we see in BC. One difference was the shepherd we met at the start of the track who was minding one sheep. The shepherd was blind but the sheep listened to his voice and finally returned to him rather than continuing to follow us.
Weather-wise we could not have asked for a better morning as we climbed lots the first hour and with the cloud layer it was comfortable – although a bit humid. As the day progressed we moved from this wooded trail up to views of the mountains behind and the valley below. In the valley we spotted many different villages but we are only planning to visit 4 villages with the end being the last one.
After climbing up the side of the hill towards the ridgeline we are walking along near the top towards the downward slope of the hills ridges. We follow the trail around the leading edge and contour downward back towards the mountains. Then we drop down to a village and take the trail on the other side which wanders around the hills below the forested slopes downward into the valley.
The views may seem similar to the many others we have seen this week, but also very unique. I can not explain the difference easily but if you look at the pictures you will see the differences. What I would like to comment on is the beautiful wild flowers we found as we trekked today. But the pictures of my favourite finds are the best way to describe them.
We returned to the hotel to rest before dinner and plan our travels tomorrow. We leave here to head back to Porto where all but Wes and I will be leaving by plane. We will continue our stay in Portugal for the next few days to go to Nazarene. 
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